The Wardrobe
by PHANGIRLFOREVER
Summary: What would happen if Dan Howell suddenly finds that Phil Lester has disappeared, and that he's the only one to remember him?
1. Chapter 1

Dan kneeled on the shaggy, light grey carpet of his flat, picking at the weird frayed ends that stuck out by the wall. Whatever caused the carpet to do that, it had happened before he and Phil moved in. _Whatever, just forget about it_ , he told himself. _It's time to control your obsession over imperfection_.

He turned back to the new wardrobe they had just built. Dan stood up and walked over to the 'masterpiece' that was the wardrobe. "Are we filming?" He called over his shoulder to Phil. "Okay, help me move this to the wall then." He paused, looking behind the looming wooden wardrobe. "Phil?" He took a few steps forward. "Phil?!" Frowning, he walked back behind the wardrobe. "PHIL!" No response. Dan rolled his eyes. "Fine! I don't need you!" He called to the empty room.

Suddenly, he felt a wave of dizziness wash over him. Stumbling, he tripped on the corner of the new wardrobe. As his head collided with the floor, and blackness overwhelmed him, all Dan Howell could think was, _I shouldn't have said that. What if I do need him?_

Sometime later, Dan opened his eyes. _Where am I?_ He realized with a jolt that he'd knocked himself unconscious. He was lying on the floor, ruff grey carpet scratching his face unpleasantly. "Hey, Phil?" He called out as he heaved himself up. Again, nobody answered. _He probably went out_. He thought, desperately trying to be rational. _But what if he took you seriously? What if Phil thinks you don't need him?_ A tiny voice at the back of his head piped up.

Dan reached for his phone, which was never too far from his side. Dialling Phil's number, he waited. " _The number you are using is not in service. Please try again, or press pound for more options_." Dan frowned. Suddenly he turned and, as if in a trance, walked towards Phil's bedroom. He pushed the door open and froze. Empty boxes cluttered the floor, cobwebs hung from the ceiling and dust coated the walls. Dan stared at the room, the room that so many people across the world knew. The room which was now empty.

"Phil?"


	2. Chapter 2

The Google home screen stared back blankly as Dan tried to work up the courage to type in the fateful words. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and let his hands find their way. He knew it was right just by how many times he'd typed the same thing. _AmazingPhil_. Under the keywords three words popped up that nearly made his heart stop. ' _Did you mean_ ' and then a list of countless, meaningless phrases. _No. This can't be happening! A person can't suddenly vanish, leading everyone to believe they never existed. Not everyone._ He grabbed his phone again.

Dialling PJ, he gasped out his fear: "Phil disappeared!" Silence. So long Dan feared his friend had never heard him. "Who is this?" Came the hesitant reply. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, 'WHO IS THIS'? It's Dan, you idiot!" The familiar voice was blank. "Sorry, I think you've got the wrong number." _A person can't suddenly vanish. Can they?_

 _Wait...Phil supposedly doesn't exist_ , He looked down at his hands. _If Phil doesn't exist, does all he did for me still exist?_ Dan reached again for the phone, and typed in the words that came even more naturally. _Danisnotonfire_. Instead of finding his channel, however, an assortment of random videos popped up. _No! If I'm not a Youtuber, then what am I?_ Suddenly, a horrible realization dawned on him. Memories - so faint they felt like scraps of dreams - flickered through his mind. Memories before the existential crisis. Memories before Phil.

 _If Phil never existed, then I had no one save me from myself._


	3. Chapter 3

_Dan, it's time to get a job. Your channel isn't going anywhere at this rate_ , he realized. _But what do I do? I haven't had to worry about this in years_. With a glance at the clock, he reprimanded himself. _It's too late now, though. I can worry about that tomorrow_. With a sigh, he dropped his dishes on the counter and stalked out of the room. He would have nothing to do online, he'd already checked, because if there was no danisnotonfire, there was no Twitter, no Facebook, no anything.

Pacing his bedroom floor wasn't as helpful without someone in the next room to hear. Dan was lost for what to do, though. Should he report Phil as missing? But there was no evidence he had ever existed, no one except Dan to remember him. Exhausted, Dan collapsed into bed, not bothering to turn off the lights. _Just in case Phil gets home_ , he thought, even though he knew he just didn't want to turn them off himself.

Phil wasn't coming back, wherever he was. He had to accept that. He had to get on with his life. Tomorrow he would start fresh. He would look for job opportunities and work from there. Then, maybe, he could try YouTube again, once he had a steady income. Dan stood up and walked over to the window. Glowing lights and nighttime cityscape gazed back. Suddenly, the view turned fuzzy, and hot tears ran down Dan's cheeks.

 _Where are you?_ He thought, as he miserably scanned the glowing blobs of colour through his tears. _I couldn't have just imagined you, Phil. I know, because you can't fall in love with your own imagination._


	4. Chapter 4

Dan looked out the window, thoughts as cold and grey as the clouds outside. _I don't have a job, my friends don't know I exist and the love of my life disappeared thinking I don't need him._ I don't have anything. He grit his teeth. _I don't have anything without Phil_. With clenched fists, he paced over to the wardrobe, the very thing, it seemed, that had caused this turn of events. CRASH! Dan winced as his hand met glass, and the mirror in the wardrobe shattered.

Picking up a piece of the mirror, he held it to his wrist. Blood trickled down his fingers, falling like rain to the carpet below. Tears pricked his eyes. Living wasn't worth the heartache anymore. The shower of blood pooled on the floor in ominous puddles. Blackness dulled the edges of his vision, and he let go of the glass. With a final tear that trickled down his cheek, Dan Howell fell back against the wall.

Icy black pressed in from all sides, making him shiver. He couldn't see, could barely even think. Sluggishly, Dan's mind tried to understand what had happened. _I'm supposed to be dead. What's going on?_ He tried to reach out and feel where he was, but his hands met only ruff carpet. Very _familiar_ , ruff carpet. Warmth spread through him, and he blinked his eyes open to the golden glow of his flat with sunlight pouring in the window. But the warmth that he could feel around him wasn't caused only by the sun. A strange certainty crept over him. Dan peered around the dark, wooden wardrobe and froze. The mirror, which reflected himself clearly, was still intact.

Dread chilled his blood, and he called out tentatively, "Phil?" Hope, seemingly useless hope, warmed him. "Phil?" Now praying, Dan sidestepped the wardrobe and looked around. "PHIL!?" Suddenly, there was a small scraping noise. "ROAR!" The mirrored doors flew open and Phil climbed out. Dan stared uncomprehendingly at his friend, his features blank. Phil, gasping with laughter, met his eyes. A slow smile crept over Dan. "Did you _get in the wardrobe?_ " He asked sceptically. Phil, clearly pleased with his joke, smiled happily in reply.

A whisper, barely loud enough to hear, murmured far back in Dan's mind. _Always be grateful for what you have. Sometimes, though, don't question too much._ He shook his head, thanking whom or whatever had made this possible. With a glance down at his wrists, he murmured. "A world without Phil is not one I want to live. After all, I wouldn't even be living it if not for him."


	5. Chapter 5

Hi, guys! I hope you enjoyed reading the Wardrobe! Please leave a review and let me hear what you think! If you have any ideas for a new fic then by all means you're free to suggest them (if you don't want them for yourself, that is) and I'll see what I can do! Thanks to those first few that reviewed and asked for more chapters, that was definitely a highlight to my day. I really doubt I would have had the wherewithal to finish this story without you, as I, like the characters I'm writing about, tend to procrastinate horribly! Also, if anyone has an idea for a cover image for this fic, please let me know about it. Thanks!


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